Bank of America Corp DE Acquires 273,483 Shares of Navient Co. (NASDAQ:NAVI)

Bank of America Corp DE raised its position in Navient Co. (NASDAQ:NAVI - Free Report) by 69.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 667,372 shares of the credit services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 273,483 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE owned approximately 0.62% of Navient worth $8,869,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Sterling Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Navient by 815.0% during the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 2,443 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 2,176 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Navient during the 4th quarter worth approximately $167,000. AXQ Capital LP bought a new stake in Navient during the 4th quarter worth approximately $196,000. Headlands Technologies LLC raised its holdings in Navient by 757.3% during the 4th quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 14,737 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $196,000 after buying an additional 13,018 shares during the period. Finally, Aigen Investment Management LP bought a new position in Navient in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $258,000. 97.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NAVI has been the subject of several research analyst reports. TD Securities upped their price target on shares of Navient from $11.00 to $12.00 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on shares of Navient from $16.00 to $14.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 31st. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their target price on Navient from $14.00 to $12.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 21st. TD Cowen downgraded Navient from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Navient from $11.00 to $12.50 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $12.93.

Navient Stock Up 1.6%

NAVI traded up $0.21 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $13.59. 569,603 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 767,901. The stock has a market cap of $1.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.72 and a beta of 1.38. Navient Co. has a 1-year low of $10.53 and a 1-year high of $16.97. The stock's 50-day moving average is $12.45 and its two-hundred day moving average is $13.52. The company has a quick ratio of 9.49, a current ratio of 9.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.35.

Navient (NASDAQ:NAVI - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The credit services provider reported $0.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.19 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $156.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $150.40 million. Navient had a return on equity of 6.69% and a net margin of 2.96%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.47 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Navient Co. will post 1.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Navient Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 6th will be issued a $0.16 dividend. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.71%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 6th. Navient's payout ratio is presently 128.00%.

Navient Company Profile

Navient Corporation provides technology-enabled education finance and business processing solutions for education, health care, and government clients in the United States. It operates through three segments: Federal Education Loans, Consumer Lending, and Business Processing. The company owns Federal Family Education Loan Program (FFELP) loans that are insured or guaranteed by state or not-for-profit agencies; and performs servicing on its portfolios, as well as federal education loans held by other institutions.